Call for Scots smoking ban in cars

A LUNG disease charity has urged Scotland to follow the lead of Wales and do more to prevent children being exposed to second-hand smoke in cars.

The British Lung Foundation (BLF) wants drivers north of the Border to stub out their cigarettes when in their vehicles, particularly where children are present.

Research by the charity shows that 51 per cent of children aged eight-15 in the UK have been exposed to cigarette smoke when confined in a car.

It claims that smoking just one cigarette in a vehicle, even with the window open, creates a greater concentration of second-hand smoke than a whole evening’s smoking in a pub.

The British Medical Association said there was conclusive evidence that passive smoking by children caused lung illness, poor lung function, asthma attacks and cot death. There is also evidence linking it to cancers, meningitis and heart disease.

More than 15,000 people have signed a petition calling for government action and the latest poll, published in July, shows 83 per cent of Welsh adults support a ban on smoking in cars with children, with 65 per cent of them strongly supporting it.

Dr James Cant, head of BLF Scotland, said: “Smoking in a car is similar to bottling up smog from the world’s most-polluted cities. We need to follow Wales’s lead to ensure no child in Scotland is left behind and forced to endure a polluted car ride.”